Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Maybe They Learned It From The Mob?

OK, part of me says that some kids probably could use a little corporal punishment, and some could use some sergeant punishment, too, if you get my drift! But this seems a little extreme--and it's from the district whose superintendent is now President Obama's Secretary of Education.

Hundreds of students have allegedly been beaten by teachers, coaches and staff at Chicago Public Schools. 2 Investigator Dave Savini continues his ongoing investigation involving the illegal use corporal punishment...

An exclusive CBS 2 investigation discovered Treveon Martin is one of at least 818 Chicago Public School students, since 2003, to allege being battered by a teacher or an aide, coach, security guard, or even a principal. In most of those cases - 568 of them - Chicago Public School investigators determined the children were telling the truth...

The 2 Investigators found reports of students beaten with broomsticks, whipped with belts, yard sticks, struck with staplers, choked, stomped on and pushed down stairs. One substitute teacher even fractured a student's neck.

But even more alarming, in the vast majority of cases, teachers found guilty were only given a slap on the wrist...

"Any founded allegation where an adult is hitting a child, hitting a student - they're going to be gone," (former superintendent and current US Secretary of Education Arne) Duncan said.

But that's not what happened under Duncan's watch. Of the 568 verified cases, only 24 led to termination. Records show one teacher who quote "battered students for several years" was simply given a "warning" by the Board of Education...

I'm not a big fan of corporal punishment because it can go too far and it's a fine line between discipline and abuse. Nevertheless, many schools in Texas still allow corporal punishment IF a parent signs a waiver for such actions. The sad thing is, most of the parents who do sign the waiver are African American. And when you hear high school kids discuss typical discipline in the home, some of the stories that come out of even very well to do African American homes is shocking. Maybe it's a cultural thing, I don't know, but I have seen this trend for the last 25 or so years.